04 September 2017

Will Romania forbid marriage for all?

The Romanians are to vote in a referendum this autumn on whether marriage should be defined as a union between man and woman, thus excluding the possibility of same-sex marriages. The parliament paved the way for a vote in May and now the ruling PSD wants to hold it as soon possible. Romanian commentators fear the worst.

Minorities have everything to fear

For LGBT activist Vlad Viski writing on blog portal Adevârul this will open up a Pandora's box:

“The amendment of the constitution would not just have immediate consequences. The constitution stands for the values of the society in which we live. Today the issue is members of the LGBT community, tomorrow it could be abortion rights, the Roma, Hungarians or the disabled. Once the Pandora's box has been opened, no one can guarantee that there won't be many more referendum issues in which certain citizens are accused of not conforming to an extremely restrictive norm. This is why the constitutional amendment initiative affects us all. It's about the people of this country and about how we behave vis-à-vis the state and our fellow citizens.”

Dragnea digging his own grave

In the eyes of Hotnews commentator Dan Tapalaga the PSD leader Liviu Dragnea is digging his own political grave with this initiative:

“Holding a referendum on the traditional family brings us closer to the Visegrád states and away from Western Europe. After a series of scandals in which high-ranking prelates were accused of having homosexual relationships, it's questionable that the Orthodox Church will support the vote. I believe they would be making themselves ridiculous. … Liviu Dragnea doesn't realise that he has crossed a line. In any country which - like Romania - faces a sea of foreign policy threats, such initiatives would be a party leader's final act.”